Recruiting Update: Dwayne Cohill (2018)

Highly-coveted point guard Dwayne Cohill hit the pavement today, speeding to Duquesne for a college visit.  The speedster Cohill is returning the favor, showing love in response to the scholarship offer from the Dukes Head Coach Jim Ferry. The presumptive PrepHoopsOhio #1 in 2018 has several visits on deck. "I will be at Xavier Saturday," said Dwayne Cohill Tuesday night to PrepHoops.com via Twitter DM. The Penn State visit hogs his September 3rd.  The Holy Name High star continues to improve his skill set, but the offer list currently he currently boasts speaks volumes. Cohill has offers from Duquesne, Youngstown State, West Virginia, Ohio State, Penn State, DePaul, Tulsa, Stony Brook, UNLV, Cleveland State, Northwestern, Xavier, and Toledo.

Recruiting Timeline

Youngstown State beat everybody to the punch, offering June 2015.  Atypical in his recruiting climb was how fast after YSU Penn State joined in. "I feel like the Youngstown State started it all,” said Cohill.  “They kind of jump-started my recruitment." Once a Big 10 school offers a Midwest young man, all bets are off.  Cohill was offered early by Penn State, and now he could ascend anywhere to Big 10 elite to ACC elite to even bluebloods. What is his recruiting ceiling?  Just think, two years of basketball separate him from Orientation Day.

Xavier

Saturday, Dwayne Cohill will step onto the newly-expanded Xavier University campus.  Like most colleges XU is expanding, adding enrollment.  Still, they are a smaller, private option compared to Cohill’s Penn State, Ohio State, West Virginia offers. “The feel of the school is kinda like my high school,” said Cohill.  “Smaller like mine. Cohill attends and dominates for Holy Name High School.  With Xavier he would have a Jordan Crawford type of impact. “I haven't seen much of the academic part of it,” said Cohill.  “From the basketball standpoint I love the system. It is very guard-oriented.  Coach (Chris) Mack and Coach (Travis) Steele, they develop their guards really well.  And they play in a great conference in Big East.   I would be playing great competition night in and night out.” Xavier used to be a big fish in the Atlantic 10.  Now they are a medium fish in the Big East.  Based on their last couple years they truly could ascend to second-best behind Villanova.  Unlike the great coaches before him (Thad Matta, Sean Miller, Skip Prosser, etc.) Chris Mack has not jumped for the “bigger” program. Last year was a wonderful chance and he stayed.  He is from Cincinnati, grew up playing ball in town.  Will he make Xavier a Duke/Nova type? Players like Cohill can vault a program up and several players like Cohill together can make something special in the Big East Conference. “I talk to Coach Steele usually once or twice a week,” said Cohill.  “Me and him have a great relationship.  He has been recruiting me since going into my freshman year.  Maybe 8th grade year June they have been recruiting me.  Me and them have a great relationship.”

Duquesne

At first glance Duquesne does not explode off the page, compared to the mammoth powers on his list, but Cohill is not deterred. “It is great,” said Cohill.  “I love Coach (Jim) Perry and the coaching staff.  Even though it is not a big scho0l, it is a great place.  But once you go there it is not just Duquesne.  It is a smart place, historic.  They love their basketball there.” Duquesne is a curious program.  They have good coaches, but don’t have a national brand like most of Cohill’s coveters.  Frankly they are doing a great job in the last decade of erasing a tradition of losing that stained the program throughout the 90’s. Duquesne made a wonderful pitch to Cohill though.  They offered the chance for Dwayne and Robby Carmody to come in and get the ball from day one. "This our second year playing together (on AAU), but I have played against him since third grade," said Cohill. He is serious about the option. “It is right in the heart of Pittsburgh,” said Cohill.  “You get to play in front of thousands of people.  It is great.” Dwayne has camped with elite hoopers for the last couple years.  When he sparkled with Fab Frosh Camp (ATL) against numerous now-Top 100 guys it became apparent college basketball was possible. To see him realizing his potential so quickly is a little jarring, but destiny sometimes hurries its arrival.

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Cohill could easily chose the perfect college from his current list, but elite players don't have many recruiting bounds. Cohill has scorching interest from numerous power programs. "I am talking to Michigan, Vanderbilt, Texas, Notre Dame," said Cohill.  "Butler, Indiana.  There are a few more (offers) coming soon."